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. 2002 Oct;51(4):496-501.
doi: 10.1136/gut.51.4.496.

Pan-colonic decrease in interstitial cells of Cajal in patients with slow transit constipation

G L Lyford  1 , C-L He, E Soffer, T L Hull, S A Strong, A J Senagore, L J Burgart, T Young-Fadok, J H Szurszewski, G Farrugia
Affiliations

Pan-colonic decrease in interstitial cells of Cajal in patients with slow transit constipation

G L Lyford et al. Gut. 2002 Oct.

Abstract

Background: Interstitial cells of Cajal (ICC) are required for normal intestinal motility. ICC are found throughout the human colon and are decreased in the sigmoid colon of patients with slow transit constipation.

Aims: The aims of this study were to determine the normal distribution of ICC within the human colon and to determine if ICC are decreased throughout the colon in slow transit constipation.

Patients: The caecum, ascending, transverse, and sigmoid colons from six patients with slow transit constipation and colonic tissue from patients with resected colon cancer were used for this study.

Methods: ICC cells were identified with a polyclonal antibody to c-Kit, serial 0.5 microm sections were obtained by confocal microscopy, and three dimensional software was employed to reconstruct the entire thickness of the colonic muscularis propria and submucosa.

Results: ICC were located within both the longitudinal and circular muscle layers. Two networks of ICC were identified, one in the myenteric plexus region and another, less defined network, in the submucosal border. Caecum, ascending colon, transverse colon, and sigmoid colon displayed similar ICC volumes. ICC volume was significantly lower in the slow transit constipation patients across all colonic regions.

Conclusions: The data suggest that ICC distribution is relatively uniform throughout the human colon and that decreased ICC volume is pan-colonic in idiopathic slow transit constipation.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Three dimensional reconstruction of c-kit immunoreactivity in the caecum for control tissue (left panel) and slow transit constipation (right panel) specimens. Each panel is of a representative sample. Panels represent separate reconstructions in the submucosal border (SMB), circular smooth muscle layer (CM), myenteric plexus region (MPR), and longitudinal muscle layer (LM). Scale bar is 50 μm.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Three dimensional reconstruction of c-kit immunoreactivity in the ascending colon for control tissue (left panel) and slow transit constipation (right panel) specimens. Each panel is of a representative sample. Panels represent separate reconstructions in the submucosal border (SMB), circular smooth muscle layer (CM), myenteric plexus region (MPR), and longitudinal muscle layer (LM). Scale bar is 50 μm.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Three dimensional reconstruction of c-kit immunoreactivity in the transverse colon for control tissue (left panel) and slow transit constipation (right panel) specimens. Each panel is of a representative sample. Panels represent separate reconstructions in the submucosal border (SMB), circular smooth muscle layer (CM), myenteric plexus region (MPR), and longitudinal muscle layer (LM). Scale bar is 50 μm.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Three dimensional reconstruction of c-kit immunoreactivity in the sigmoid colon for control tissue (left panel) and slow transit constipation (right panel) specimens. Each panel is of a representative sample. Panels represent separate reconstructions in the submucosal border (SMB), circular smooth muscle layer (CM), myenteric plexus region (MPR), and longitudinal muscle layer (LM). Scale bar is 50 μm.
Figure 5
Figure 5
c-kit immunoreactivity of interstitial cells of Cajal (ICC) expressed as per cent volume for the submucosal border (SMB), circular smooth muscle layer (CM), myenteric plexus region (MPR), and longitudinal muscle layer (LM) in control colonic tissue and in slow transit constipation (STC). Control versus STC are all p<0.05; n=6 for all data points. Values are mean (SEM).
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Comment in

References

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